Gold Derby TV Awards 2025: 'Squid Game' dominates with 6 wins including Best Drama Series; Lee Jung-jae wins Best Drama Actor

'

Squid Game

' received six awards at the 2025

Gold Derby TV Awards

, announced on August 19 (Korean time) via the

Gold Derby

website. The event recognised TV and film content from 2024 to 2025. 'Squid Game' Seasons 2 and 3, released in December 2024 and June 2025 respectively, were eligible for these honours. The series won

Best Drama Series

. This achievement follows the original season's success, which generated over 1.65 billion viewing hours worldwide, according to

Netflix

data.

Key acting awards

Lee Jung-jae

won Best Drama Actor for his role as Seong Gi-hun. Kang Ae-shim received Best Supporting Actress for portraying Jang Geum-ja.

Choi Seung-hyun

, known as TOP from BIGBANG, earned Best Supporting Actor for his character. Gong Yoo was awarded Best Guest Performer for his role as the 'Ddakji Man'. The cast also received the Ensemble of the Year award.

Event Context and Broader Recognition

The Gold Derby TV Awards, in its 22nd year, covers 30 categories including drama, comedy, animation, and movies. 'Squid Game' won in the drama series category. According to industry experts at Variety,

Korean content

has seen a 150% surge in viewership in South Asia over the past two years. Forbes analysts estimate that similar award wins have increased streaming subscriptions by up to 20% in emerging markets.